Abraxas - Perennial Artisan Ales

T-Leb

Missouri

4.98/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 5

You should be excited about this beer! It is fantastic.

Abraxas pours dark and rich as you would expect with a great bronze head. Once poured one can immediately start sniffing hints of vanilla bean and cocoa nibs. The taste is complex. I like to think of the taste of this beer like going to a Yonder Mountain String Band concert. The band plays together beautifully, but when each band member has a chance to solo you can really hear each component. The same is true for Abraxas. A taste of Abraxas develops in stages. At first it is a chocolate but as it warms up you experience more vanilla/espresso taste, but cold/warm it finishes with a chili spice and cinnamon perfection.

Serving type: on-tap

01-21-2013 18:06:52 | More by T-Leb

SpeedwayJim

New York

4.55/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

2012 vintage into a Brooklyn Brewery snifter. Shared with schen9303.

Pours pitch black with a dark, fluffy mocha colored head with good retention. Beer is pitch black. Lacing is thick but sparse with oily legs. Real menacing look brew.

Nose is mint, chocolate, fudge, and cocoa. Vanilla beans smooth out the experience while a touch of spice tickles the nose. Very deep and rich. Moderately aromatic. Solid.

Opens cocoa, cinnamon spice, chocolate, and fudge. Vanilla beans add even more sweetness towards the middle. Some heat comes in towards the end amidst more fudge and milk and dark chocolate sweetness. Chili peppers in the end with a heated, sweet, cinnamon finish. Great complexity, very unique, and really well integrated.

Full bodied with moderate carbonation. Oily, slick, and rich in the mouth and goes down messy, smooth, and thick. Messy finish with a sticky, lingering aftertaste. Couldn't ask for more.

I haven't been a fan of a lot of Perennial's beers and in fact, I feel they're a bit over-rated overall. However, Abraxas is a revelation. The flavor has great balance and complexity, the feel is incredible, and the look and nose are spot on. I wish I'd picked up a lot more of these when I had the chance.

Serving type: bottle

06-19-2013 01:52:57 | More by SpeedwayJim

taylor714914

Pennsylvania

4.75/5  rDev +8.4%

06-18-2013 23:49:13 | More by taylor714914

Auztan

Illinois

4.75/5  rDev +8.4%

06-18-2013 19:36:49 | More by Auztan

GregSVT

Texas

4.75/5  rDev +8.4%

06-18-2013 19:06:00 | More by GregSVT

beerandcycling88

Washington

3/5  rDev -31.5%

06-18-2013 14:42:23 | More by beerandcycling88

Hessian257

New Jersey

4.25/5  rDev -3%

06-16-2013 13:20:49 | More by Hessian257

Devi0us

California

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

06-15-2013 09:22:22 | More by Devi0us

browniewithnuts

Pennsylvania

4.75/5  rDev +8.4%

06-10-2013 01:21:08 | More by browniewithnuts

savagepm

Colorado

4.75/5  rDev +8.4%

06-07-2013 23:03:39 | More by savagepm

Drucifer

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -14.4%

06-06-2013 02:49:44 | More by Drucifer

Stevedore

Wisconsin

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

06-04-2013 15:51:20 | More by Stevedore

millerbuffoon

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

06-03-2013 22:51:29 | More by millerbuffoon

jbuddle

New York

4/5  rDev -8.7%

06-03-2013 17:00:30 | More by jbuddle

mtrog313

Michigan

3.75/5  rDev -14.4%

06-02-2013 20:00:42 | More by mtrog313

Mark000

Kentucky

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

06-02-2013 12:42:34 | More by Mark000

jrallen34

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -14.4%

06-01-2013 11:59:22 | More by jrallen34

VaTechHopHead

California

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

05-31-2013 23:06:37 | More by VaTechHopHead

mtbdonn

United Kingdom (England)

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

05-31-2013 18:17:43 | More by mtbdonn

JMRSN

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -8.7%

05-31-2013 00:49:11 | More by JMRSN

jampics2

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

05-29-2013 16:39:14 | More by jampics2

Pete27lax

New York

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%

05-29-2013 04:39:03 | More by Pete27lax

gtermi

Texas

5/5  rDev +14.2%

05-29-2013 02:44:07 | More by gtermi

Cvescalante

Texas

4.84/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Enjoyed this bottle with my buddy Gtermi. Big thanks to Arcook11 for working out a great trade and going out of his way to make this happen for me.

Pours black big dark brown head that holds for a little bit, then slowly fades to nothing. This gets overused, but it looked like I was pouring motor oil into a tulip.

Chocolate, vanilla and cinnamon invite the nose to dive into the glass and stay for a while. A little heat from the alcohol and chiles are present, but not overwhelming.

At the beginning of each sip, rich chocolatey goodness is what I got, followed by vanilla and cinnamon at the end. I know those damn chiles were messing around somewhere, but they showed up here and there, only for a positive contribution.

Thick and velvety smooth, exactly what I want in an imperial stout. Not much carbonation.

This one exceeded all of my hopes and expectations by so far. It definitely lives up to the hype it recieves and is worth trying hard to seek out. Could be a candidate for my favorite imperial stout. I loved it!

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2013 02:41:44 | More by Cvescalante

brentk56

North Carolina

4.28/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Appearance: A great looking obsidian-colored stout arrives at the bar, with a massive head that leaves sheets of lacing behind

Smell: Chocolate, coffee, chile and cinnamon aromas all waft upwards from the beer

Taste: Chocolate and coffee flavors dominate the front end with cinnamon appearing in the middle; after the swallow, heat from the chile peppers hits the taste buds though the lasting impression, in the finish, is from the cinnamon

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation

Overall: Really nice and complex flavors though the cinnamon is a bit to strong in the finish; still, a keeper

Serving type: on-tap

05-27-2013 22:31:43 | More by brentk56